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https://reneweconomy.com.au/australias-election-result-echoes-that-of-canada-should-its-policies-as-well/>
"Australians were casting their votes as I began to write this, and even before
the thumping Labor victory emerged from left field, the parallels with Canada’s
recent election were already clear.
Just days before Australians went to the polls, my fellow Canadians faced a
similar choice. In late April, Mark Carney’s Liberals narrowly defeated Pierre
Poilievre’s Conservatives in a high-stakes contest that hinged on climate
policy, economic resilience, housing affordability, and international
alignment.
Carney, a former central banker and global climate envoy, won the prime
ministership by balancing aggressive climate action with economic pragmatism,
providing a clear lesson in political navigation for a nation struggling to
reconcile energy transition with cost-of-living concerns. Australians,
currently facing similar debates about climate, housing, economic growth, and
global alliances, have plenty to learn from Canada’s recent political choices.
Carney’s first and perhaps most critical political maneuver after being elected
leader of the Liberals and hence Prime Minister under our governance system,
was tackling climate action without provoking voter backlash.
Canada’s carbon tax had become increasingly unpopular among voters burdened by
inflation and rising energy prices, in large part because the Conservatives and
Canada’s delayers and deniers had amplified anti-carbon tax messaging by
Poilievre, whose “Axe the Tax” jingoistic simplicity was repeated ad nauseum.
Carney quickly neutralised the political threat from Poilievre by scrapping the
consumer carbon levy on gasoline and home heating fuels shortly after taking
office. Rather than abandoning climate action, he shifted the focus to placing
greater responsibility on large industrial polluters.
Canada’s oil and gas sector, previously facing stringent emissions caps under
the Trudeau administration, now faces tighter methane regulations and enhanced
oversight on emissions intensity, while being offered substantial incentives
for carbon capture technologies.
This tactical pivot prevented climate action from becoming politically toxic,
something Australian policymakers have struggled with ever since the repeal of
its own carbon price in 2014.
Sadly, instead of Canada’s consumer carbon price becoming a success story to
counter Australia’s example, it’s become more evidence that consumer carbon
prices are politically vulnerable. Carney’s approach suggests a workable path
forward – climate action can still progress as long as voters see costs being
fairly distributed, primarily borne by polluting industries rather than
everyday households.
Hopefully the balancing act will bear emissions reductions fruit, but execution
is critical."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
